Bloxham

"BLOXHAM, a parish in the hundred of Bloxham, in the county of Oxford, 3 miles to the S.W. of Banbury, its post town. It is watered by a small stream, a branch of the river Cherwell, and contains the chapelries of Bloxham and Milcombe. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Oxford, of the value of £290, in the patronage of the Provost and Fellows of Eton College. The church is dedicated to St. Mary, and is a fine specimen of the geometrical style of architecture, with portions in the styles of both earlier and later periods. A church is supposed to have been erected not later than the first half of the 12th century, but the present building contains only a few remains of the earlier structure. The most remarkable feature is its beautiful spire, 195 feet high, which is said to be one of the most graceful in England. There is a tradition that it was built by Cardinal Wolsey, but this is considered by most authorities incorrectory The building is a spacious edifice, but somewhat too short for its great width. The chancel is unworthy of the rest of the church, though there are some interesting relics of a former structure to be found in it. The western entrance is adorned with singular sculpture, symbolising the Last Judgment. The south porch doorway is a beautiful specimen of the transition period, containing features of Norman merging into early English, while the north porch is an elegant specimen of decorated work. The church contains some brasses of unusually late date. There are chapels in the village belonging to the Baptists and the Wesleyans. A large collegiate building at the entrance of the village, built in the year 1854 as a grammar school, but which failed, is now a school for the middle classes, sons of farmers, tradesmen, &c. Boys are boarded and educated here for 25 guineas a year. It is managed by a late Fellow of New College, Oxford, and is nearly full. New parish schools for 110 children have been built in 1862, which are a great ornament to the village, as well as a public good, and have an endowment of £20 a year. The charitable endowments amount to between £300 and £400 per annum, being chiefly the produce of the feoffee's estate, which, under decree of the Court of Chancery, is divided into three parts, one for the repair of the parish church and bridges, another for the aid of the poor, and a third for the common town charges, which consist of repairing the causeways and other public works." [The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868) Transcribed by Colin Hinson ©2003]